1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of failure prediction and, more specifically to providing advance warning of impending failure for a variety of systems and devices, terms used herein interchangeably.
2. Description of the Related Art
Devices and apparatus used in various fields of medicine, industry, transportation, communications, and so forth, typically have a certain useful or operational life, after which replacement, repair, or maintenance is needed. Generally, the expected length of the operational life is known only approximately and, not untypically, premature failure is a possibility. Simple running time criteria are typically inadequate to provide timely indication of an incipient failure. In some applications, unanticipated failure of devices constitutes a at least a nuisance; however, more typically, unanticipated device failure may be a major nuisance leading to costly interruption of services and production. In other cases, such unexpected failure can seriously compromise safety and may result in potentially dangerous and life-threatening situations.